NH State Representative Steven Smith

The NH Route 12 repair work began on January 3, 2022.  The contractor, Casella, successfully acquired the Right-of-Entry from the New England Central Railroad (NECR).  Prior to starting any excavation work within the railroad right-of-way, Casella was required to monitor the track for seven (7) days. The baseline monitoring has been completed. This initial monitoring created a baseline for typical track movement while trains are operating.  The baseline can then be compared to any vibrations during soil nail wall drilling, excavating the roadway, and rebuilding the roadway and slope.

Once the initial monitoring period was complete, Casella was able to begin roadway work by removing existing guardrail, clearing and removal of trees necessary in the slope failure, and building temporary roads for railroad right-of-way access. The temporary roads are the first phase of the soil nail wall construction.  

In addition to the track monitoring, Casella needs to install additional equipment to monitor the stability of the railroad embankment. This work will entail some intermittent disruption of power in the immediate area.  The monitoring devices and power disruptions should be completed this week.

The project is moving forward.  Casella is close to completing the necessary submittals to finish ordering materials.  The project is on-schedule through January 2022 due to Casella’s attentiveness, the railroad’s responsiveness to requests, and the Department’s Bureau of Construction staff anticipating questions and concerns.  

I hope this information provides a good picture of the cooperative efforts and the progress that has been made. 

My Best,

Kathy

Kathleen Mulcahey-Hampson

Legislative Liaison

Senior Hearings Examiner, NHDOT

What to do, and not to do, if your home COVID-19 test comes back positive

PORTLAND, Maine —

As communities head back to work and school following the winter holidays, more people are relying on at-home COVID-19 test kits.

Doctors are sharing what they say your next steps should be if your home test comes back positive.

Dr. Dora Anne Mills with MaineHealth said the home test results are reliable and patients should not look to confirm their results with a PCR test at a clinic or hospital.

“If you take a home antigen test and it comes back positive, you can generally take that to the bank,” she said.

Health officials are urging people to avoid hospitals and testing sites for mild or asymptomatic cases to free up resources like PCR tests.

“There’s such a huge demand for (PCR test) right now for people who are sick and who don’t have a home test,” Mills said. “That’s why we’re really trying to preserve the testing systems.”

Mills said if someone is not experiencing symptoms and has not been in close contact with someone they know has the virus and test positive with an at-home kit, they should consider themselves to be positive, isolate and follow up with another at-home test in 24 hours.

https://www.wmur.com/article/what-to-do-and-not-to-do-if-your-home-covid-19-test-comes-back-positive/38683831

Get a free home test kit

https://sayyescovidhometest.org/

Manchester, NH – Representative Michael Vose (R-Epping) Chairman of the House Science, Technology and Energy committee released the following statement after the House passed HB549, relative to the energy efficiency resource standard and the system benefits charge by an overwhelming vote of 343-0.

“Today’s vote on HB549 sends a clear message that House Republicans will lead the effort to protect New Hampshire ratepayers. This bill puts guardrails in place that give peace of mind to fixed and low-income households that are being devastated by the inflation caused by Senator Maggie Hassan and President Joe Biden,” said Vose. “Recent filings to the PUC would have caused the Systems Benefits Charge to double. This bill prevents that by striking a balance between investing in energy efficiency and protecting ratepayers from unsustainable increases to their electric bills.”

“As legislators, we answer to our constituents. If they are unhappy with our job performance, there is an opportunity to kick us out every two years. This bill gives Granite Staters more control by restoring legislative authority over defacto electricity taxes. Changes to the System Benefits Charge affect low-income ratepayers the most and HB549 strengthens their ability to fight on their own behalf.”